There are differences between the health of man and woman. Males have high death rates at all ages and have more serious illness conditions compared to females. Women are more likely to visit the health professional, than men. These differences because biological and environmental factors.
Men and women do not face the same biological risk. Women are more resistant to a range of conditions. Also, in the behavioral pattern they are different.
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Role of Health Behavior
I have heard a lot of perceptions on how woman possess a smaller stomach hence they are unable to eat as much as a man. Although this may be a common perception, I have seen exceptions in both gender areas. As the given example in the textbook states “Men eat more meat, fat, and salt and less fiber, fruit, and vegetables than women and are more likely to smoke and show higher levels of alcohol and drug use.” (Ogden, 2017) Some reason I find that woman don’t follow this routine is that they have a tendency to watch their weight. Although not a necessary thing to do, woman are subjected to keeping an ideal image more than men even though the levels are coming equally now. Even for the intake of alcohol, men are considered more capable of holding their alcohol, smoking etc. It basically depends on the social status you are giving yourself.
Risk-Taking Behaviors
The caption itself gives the idea about how risk-taking behavior is sometimes gender based. Men are considered more capable of taking risks, doing heavy activities etc. whereas a woman is subjected to staying comfortable doing soft work. An example from textbook states “Men also have more sexual partners than women, are more likely to take part in high-risk sports and leisure activities such as rugby, snowboarding, sky diving, bungee jumping, and rally driving”. (Ogden, 2017) It’s a completely bogus interpretation. Today, woman are doing works that more than capable of even men doing. Men are also subjected to this discrimination as gender equality still ceases to exist completely. In India, a place where after the age of 21, a woman is married off as they are considered born for the duty of bearing kids, several women like Indira Gandhi, Kalpana Chawla, Mary Kom etc. have made a huge difference.
Social Norms
Basically, they are a set of predestined rules that we everyone has to follow if we grow up inside that community. A lot of conflicts arise due to these rules and regulations. As a girl, I was never allowed to leave the house without having a guardian to look after me. It is taught that a girl wouldn’t be able to look out for herself whereas a boy child is able to stay out till anytime they want as they are able to fend for themselves. During the menstruation period, the girl/woman is shunned into a room for 4 days. They considered them as carrying an illness and have to make them wait out to get healthy. Gender stereotypes can lead to prejudice and discrimination based on a perceived incongruency between gender stereotypes and role requirements, and prescriptive stereotypes can also produce prejudice if individuals violate gender norms (e.g., Burgess and Borgida, 1999; Heilman, 2001; Eagly and Karau, 2002). (Koenig, 2018)
Help-Seeking Behavior
As said in the readings, a male is considered to be tough and handle any kind of situation whereas a woman is considered to have a soft mindset hence they require more support. (Ogden, 2017) What they don’t realize is that as a human, a person’s gender does not determine their strength rather it depends on their strength of mind. Such beliefs affect the children psychologically by creating a sense of fear of the outer world. Self-confidence wavers and one might never be able to stand up for themselves in the future. Even if it is a physical illness or mental illness, one should be considered and treated equally.
My best bet on this is the role of health behavior and to an extent help-seeking behavior. Longevity of life depends on how you maintain your health regardless of your gender. The routine you follow, the care you give to yourself is the biggest contribution you can give to your body. I feel the time has gone where we can differentiate between males and females regarding these aspects. There are chemical aspects that make a difference, but the social statuses are changing day by day and we are attaining an equal gender-based world. We have come a long way but we still need to work on them
References
- Ogden, J. (2017). The psychology of health and illness: An open access course. The psychology of health illness.
- Koenig, A. M. (2018, June 26). Comparing Prescriptive and Descriptive Gender Stereotypes About Children, Adults, and the Elderly. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6028777/
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